Boris Grebenshchikov - Going West (1989-1990)

Going West (1989-1990)

Perestroika has ushered in a new era of opportunity for rock musicians; several of the more prominent ones got breaks in the West. BG's came from Dave Stewart (of Eurythmics fame). Stewart-produced Radio Silence was released in 1989, featuring covers of Alexander Vertinsky's China amid songs by BG, including a song written to Sir Thomas Malory's Death of King Arthur. Annie Lennox, Billy MacKenzie and Chrissie Hynde helped out, as did several of BG's bandmates from Aquarium.

The name of the album proved self-ironic in the extreme as it hasn't made so much as a dent in the charts. Part of the failure can be attributed to the fact that unlike the Anglo-American rock-n-roll culture, the Russian song tradition heavily emphasizes lyrical complexity over hooks or drive, which reinforces the not entirely fair comparisons between BG and Dylan.

BG issued another English-language album, Radio London, in 1990, which consisted of demos, but had some very appealing material to it.